Prehistory of North America
ANTH E-316
Larry J. Zimmerman
IUPUI, Spring 2010

Mini-Research Papers

Here is information about your research papers. You will find  the material from the syllabus, but as topics are selected, you’ll find out who in the class has selected which topic. You may also find additional information about the American Antiquity style for citations and other key information.

You will write a  paper of 5-7  double-spaced pages  (again, quality is the concern, not quantity, so use the number of pages you need). This is a research paper and thus requires a References Cited section. The paper should use American Antiquity  (see the American Antiquity style guide)or American Anthropologist (http://www.aaanet.org/pubs/style_guide.htm) citation style and bibliographic format. You may  use web materials for your paper, but please do not rely heavily on them for your research unless they are from full-text journal articles. Please organize your draft paper carefully, edit and proofread it. You will post your paper on the OnCourse Forum for everyone to read. This paper must be posted to OnCourse by April 19, 5:30 PM. You will lose 10 points for each day it is late! If you make the deadline, your paper will be offered for extra credit editing (see below). If it gets any editing by fellow students, you may use their comments, rewrite the paper, and turn it in on the last day of class, May 3, 5:30 PM.

You should choose your topic from the list below. Any variance from these topics needs approval from Dr. Zimmerman in advance.

  1. The relationship between American Indians and archaeology
  2. The repatriation/reburial issue
  3. American Indian arrival in the New World: an assessment of current views
  4. Current status of cult or fantastic or pseudoarchaeology in North America
  5. Public education in American archaeology
  6. Center and periphery: the relationship of Southwestern cultures to Mesoamerica
  7. Fiction and American archaeology: an assessment of novels about ancient America
  8. The Mississippian tradition as chiefdoms or states
  9. Impact of climatic change on prehistoric America
  10. Cultural Resources Management vs. academic archaeology in America
  11. Origins and impacts of America Indian agriculture
  12. Origins and spread of American Indian technologies (ceramics, bow & arrow, forms of shelter, etc.)
  13. The development, use and impact of dating techniques on American Archaeology
  14. The relationship of historic to prehistoric archaeology in North America
  15. Tracing the development of a specific archaeological complex (such as Hohokam, Anasazi, Cahokia)

 

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Image: The Great Serpent Mound near Cincinnati, OH, about 2.5 hours from Indianapolis. It’s worth a visit!